Method of and means for ginning cotton



A g. 20, 1929. w. 1.. HANCOCK KETHOD OF AND MEANS FOR GINNING COTTON Filed Nov. 12, 1928 Patented Aug. 20, 1929..

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

WILLIAM L. HANCOCK, OF DALLAS, TEXAS, ASSIGNOR TO THE MURRAY COMPANY, or

DALLAS, TEXAS, A CORPORATION OF TEXAS.

METHOD OF AND MEANS FOR GINNING COTTON.

Application filerl November 12, 1928.

This invention relates to new and useful improvements in methods of and means for ginning cotton. 1

The invention has to do with air blast cot- 5 ton gins and particularly relates to the air action or functions of the same.

In the type of air blast gins now in common use considerable difliculty is experienced from counter air currents from both above and below the lint entrance to the lint duct.

The air ejected from the nozzle and which strips the cotton from the teeth causes air from within the gin housing to be drawn into the lint duct, thus carrying in more or less dust, dirt and shale. This indrawn air or counter air current tends to soil the cotton and also interferes with the ginning operation.

One object of the invention is to defeat these counter air currents by supplying a blast or jet of clean air contiguous to the lint duct entrance, whereby only clean air will be drawn into the duct and also whereby the operation of the gin will not be affected by counter air currents drawn from above and below the duct entrance.

A particular object of the invention is to clean the lint cotton while in transit and while carried by the saw teeth, whereby the grade of the ginned cotton is raised and whereby it is freed from a considerable amount of dust, dirt and shale.

A further object of the invention is to stratify or card the lint fibres while carried by the saws which tends to prevent matting and breaking of the fibres and greatly improves the sample.

A construction designed to carry out the invention will be hereinafter described, together with other features of the invention.

The invention will be more readily un-.

derstood from a reading of the following specification and by reference to the accompanying drawings in which an example of the invention is shown, and wherein:

Fig. l is a partial transverse vertical sectional view of an air blast gin equipped with a nozzle constructed in accordance with the invention,

Fig. 2 is a cross-sectional view taken on the line 22 of Fig. 1.

In the drawings the numeral 10 designates the saw mandrel or shaft on which the gin saws 12 are mounted in the usual Serial No. 318,683.

way and separated by the spacer blocks 11. Contiguous to the rear edges of the saws is located the air blast nozzle 13 arranged to direct a transverse blast of air downwardly on the peripheries of the saws and discharge the lint into the lint duct 14.. Air is supplied under pressure to the head 15 of the nozzle through a curved duct 16. The partition sheet 17 between the lint and air ducts extends up into the head and with the apron 18 depending from the head in front of the said sheet, forms the nozzle 13 and a throat 19 leading to the nozzle.

The nozzle is located well below the center of the mandrel 10. The saws revolve in a clockwise direction and the jet of air from the nozzle casts the lint from the saw teeth into the lint duct 14. The'lint duct leads to the lint flue (not shown) and an air suction maintained in said duct and flue conveys the lint.

The air suction in the lint duct, together with the air blast from the nozzle, tends to draw air from the gin into the lint duct, thus setting up counter air currents. Practically all of the moting is done by centrifugal action above the head 15, but a counter air current from over the head will draw a certain amount. of dust and fine particles into the lint duct.

A certain percentage of trash will fall and float between the saws in the spaces between the blocks 11 and the teeth. A counter air current drawn upward in the gin and over the lower front edge 20 of the lint duct, will carry dust, dirt and shale into the duct. WVhile a high grade of sample is obtained with the air blast gin shown and the moting is done above the head 15, by revolving the saws at a high rate of speed, considerable dirt, dust and shale gets into the cotton in the lint duct.

It is evident that by defeating the counter air currents from above and below the entrance to the lint duct and supplying clean air to promote suction in the lint duct, less dust, dirt and shale will be taken into the duct with the cotton. To accomplish this result a row of orifices 0r ports 21are provided in the apron 18. These ports are spaced apart and located relatively between the saws so as to direct jets of air from the throat 19 into the spaces between the saws and toward the spacer blocks 11.

The ports are positioned well above the discharge opening of the nozzle 13, but their location, number, size and shape is subject to variation as conditions may require. It is preferable to incline the walls of the ports upwardly, whereby the air jets are directed slightly downward. It is obvious that these air jets willcounter-act or defeatair currents from over the head 15 or from the upper part of the gin, thus keeping trash away from the mouth of the duct 14.

Such trash as comes within the path of the air jets will be cast against the lower portions of the spacer blocks and deflected into the lower part ofthe gin below the edge'20. The downwardly directed air jets from the ports 21 will act to neutralize and offset counter air currents from below the edge 20 of the lint duct, thus assuring substantially clean air to the duct.

The teeth of a gin saw are small and sharp and-each tooth therefore carries but few fibres of lint. These fibres remain on the teeth until passing the nozzle 13 and until stripped from the teeth by the air blast from the nozzle. The saws being thin, about of an inch thick, and the cotton fibres averaging about of an inch, ranging from of an inch to 1% inches in length, it is obvious that such fibres will trail on each side of the saws while suspended on the teeth.

Owing to the rapid revolution of the saws the fibres While trailing will tend to spread from each other and straighten out. In such condition the fibres are carried through the air jets from the ports 21 and in such pass ing, dirt, dust, shale and other trash are blown from the fibres toward the spacer blocks 11 and carried downward past the lower edge 20 of the mouth of the duct 14:.

The fibres while spread or fanned are more readily cleaned and one of the most effective points in the ginning operation has been selected to carry out this operation. It is further pointed out the fibres while passing through the air jets are carded or stratified, which not only promotes cleaning, but tends to prevent matting and breaking in the subsequent operations.

The sample produced by this method is of a higher grade than that usually turned out by an air blast gin. It has better color because it is cleaner and the staple is better preserved, besides being more fluffy.

Various changes in the size and shape of the different parts, as well as modifications and alterations, may be made within the scope of the appended claims.

.teeth.

What I claim, is:

1. The method of ginning seed cotton which consists in passing the lint fibres, while suspended on the saw teeth, through a jet of air directed radially of the saw and across the intake field of a lint duct, whereby said fibres are cleaned prior to stripping.

2. The method of cleaning seed cotton which consists in directing a plurality of jets of air radially into spaces intermediate the bodies of a series of gin saws and against the trailing cotton fibres, while the latter are carriedby the saws, prior to stripping the lint from the saws, and then stripping said fibres from the saws by an air blast.

3. The method of ginning seed cotton which consists in directing a plurality of air jets, other than the stripping air blast, radially into a dirt collecting space between the saws for separating and cleaning the fibres 0 while the latter are 4:. The method of ginning .see-d cotton which consists in directing a plurality of suspended on the saw air jets, other than the stripping air blast,

downwardly between the saws and radially into contact with saw spacers of materially less diameters than the saws for separating andv cleaning the fibres while the latter are suspended on the saw teeth, whereby the.

trash is forced downward in a path paralleling the lint duct.

5. Means for shutting off counter air currents from above and below the lint duct in an air blast gin, comprising a plurality of air. jets directed transversely across the lint intake to said air currents within the gin.

6. In a seed cotton gin, the combination with the gin saws, and an air blast nozzle contiguous to the saws, of means for directing a last of air radially toward the saws and transversely above the blast from the nozzle.

7. In a seed cotton gin, the combination with the gin saws, and an. air blast nozzle, of means located to direct individual jets of air between the saws and toward spacer" blocks of materially less diameter than the saws and across the blast from the nozzle.

8. In a seed cotton gin, the combination with the gin saws, of an air blast-head and nozzle having a plurality of ports alined with receiving spaces intermediate the saw bodies for discharging jets of air outwardly toward the saws and above the discharge or the blast head.

In testimony whereof I affix my signature I WILLIAM L. HANCOCK. 

